I find Hei Ming’s portraits striking. top to bottom, Common People © Hei Ming top to bottom, Monks © Hei Ming However, I think the pictures of the monks are less interesting than the common folk. The people just appear to be more real and genuine. Portraits of the common folks can be found here [...]
Yan Chang Jiang’s Paper Men series is worth taking a look. Paper Men series © Yan Chang Jiang I stumbled upon Yan’s works from the Chinese Photography website [it's all in Chinese], where a lengthy write up was given on his current exhibition in Shanghai. The dolls play out a fictional story fabricated by Yan, [...]
Zhang Peng photographs dolls with frozen expressions, against lush ambiguous backgrounds. With a background in painting, his images are striking to behold. Guifei, 2007 © Zhang Peng Red No. 3, 2007 © Zhang Peng Angel No. 1, 2006 © Zhang Peng Yi Fan No. 2, 2006 © Zhang Peng The artist on his works: In [...]
Like many contemporary Chinese photographers, Liang Yue’s work revolves around the rapid changes in contemporary Chinese society. Her Morse Code series is worth a look as it examines the social issue conceptually. The photographs in Morse Code were taken after a sand storm, which blanketed the entire city in a yellowish monotone. She stood at [...]
Diversionist, 2006 © Cao Fei Flak Photo has teamed up with 3030 Press to feature a selection of images from 3030: Photography in China for the last two weeks of January. Cool! Check it out here.
Yi Deer is a visual artist, whose work revolves around China’s history. In the Golden Fairy Tale series, he places himself as a character in historically significant places from the Cultural Revolution, while covered in golden paint from head to toe. Swing, 2004 (from “Golden Fairy Tale Study”) © Yi Deer Rider 2, 2003 (from [...]
Shao Yinong and Mu Chen, a husband-and-wife team, photographed ancestral halls across China, which were appropriated by the Red Army to use as public meeting places. As China moves ahead, these halls are once again transformed for other purposes. These carefully composed images retain the traces of history, becoming in an instant, silent and evocative. [...]
Chinese photographer Dong Wensheng’s works are cinematic. He manages to create a mysterious world in his evocative images using muted colors and tones. From the series, Chinese Garden Meditating Head Sculpture, from the Tranquilizing Room series [all images © Dong Wensheng] Most of the works can seen at Fun Art Space’s website. Click on works under Dong Wensheng. [...]
In a vein of work similar to Ryan McGinley, Lin Zhi Peng/No. 223′s photographs his friends, showcasing the lives of China’s youth. He is often cited as China’s answer to Terry Richardson, capturing tense moments with overarching themes on sexuality. According to this interview by Theme Magazine, Lin’s snapshot aesthetic is the outcome of a spontaneous process: “Most photographers have [...]
Liyu and Liu Bo’s 13 Months in the Year of the Dog turned news snippets into tongue-in-cheek recreations. They are working on a similar series for 2007 and as the year draws to a close, one sees China through a collection of weird and sometimes funny “news” images. They question the ability of the media [...]
